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ANDREW v; T. BARBERIE, or

lBRGOKLYN, E. D., NEW YORK.

Letters Patent No. 85,889, dated .Tamm/ry 12, 1869.

TREBLE-ATTACMNT FOR PIANO-FORTES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

VTo all whom it ma/y concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW V. T. BARBERIE, of Brooklyn, E. D;, in thecounty of Kings, and State of New York, have invented and made a certainnew andmseful Treble-Attachment for Piano-Fortes; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact descxipiou of thesaid invention, reference being had to the annexed drawing, making partof this speoiiication, wherein- Figure l is a vertical section at thetreble-part of the piano, showing my attachment applied thereto, and

Figure 2 is an inverted plan of the vibration-check,

the strings being shown by red lines.

The same letters denote corresponding parts.

[n piano-fortes, the treble-strings are short, and under heavy tension,and the vibration is very rapid and sharp. The eiect of this is to'impart to the restplank a tremor and motion that produce a dull or woodysound, that is-appreciable to the practised ear, and greatly detractsfrom the clear beauty of the tone. This diiiiculty is increased from-tl1e fact that generally the rest-plank a is undercut, as shown at b,Iig. l, thusleaving the edge upon which the pitch-pins are placedprojecting, and more liable to vibrate. This undercut 1s necessary totheaetion, so that the hammers will have the required room for theirmovement.

To remedy the foregoing diiculty, metal bars have been employed tofurnish both an up and also a down bearing for the strings at therest-plank, in place of the pitch-pins. These give to the string ametallic sound that is also objectionable.

The nature of my said invention consists in a vibration-check, appliedat the edge of the rest-plank, contguous to the pitch-pins of thetreble, so that the vibration will be arrested at this end of thestring, and the string itself; between the pitch-pins, be allowed tovibrate freely and clearly.

:In the drawing- The rest-plank a., sounding-board c, hitch-pins d,

of any usual or desired character; and v k represents a string orstrings or" the treble-portion of the piano.

lis my vibration-check, made of lead, or similar metal that is heavy,but slightly'sonorous. A

The said checkhas a base, byineans of which it can rest upon and beunited with the bridge on the edge of the rest-plank. Thisbase is shownas grooved longitudinally on the under side, as at o, so as to cause theveisely, at o, upon the lines of the strings, so as to allow them topass freely, as illustrated in iig. 2; and s is a screw, for holding thevibration-check in place. l find practically that this .vibration-checkprevents the disagreeable sound arising from the rest-plank at thetreble-end, and increases the clearness and brilof sonni-ous properties,effecting this result.

The vibration-cheek may extend along any desired number of notes in thepiano, and be made of one bar or of several separate pieces, and thevibration-check may be pressed upon the bridge of the rest-plank, or

pitch-pins e f, tuning-pins g, bridges h and i, are to be bearings to beupon the edges, and grooved trans liancy of tone, the weight of the leadbar, and its lack v held in its place by any desired means that willeffect

